SFE Leadership Life Arif Mahmood

22 Aug 2007 Lahore HO

Last day with Bayer Pakistan

“lost love last long"

GO SLOW: Fast and Furious

Knowledge and wisdom do not have

much currency in this age of

information.

It is all about here and now ----not

how.

A new society cannot be created by

reproducing the repugnant past ----

Life

No one can go back and change a bad

beginning

But any anyone can start now and can

create a successful ending

Freedom would be meaningless without security

in the home and in the streets.

NELSON MANDELA, speech, April 27, 1995

Change

Changing the face can change noting but

facing the change can change every thing

The brave man is not he who does not feel

afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

NELSON MANDELA, Autobiography

Mistakes

Mistakes are pain full when happen

But years later collection of mistakes is

called experience …. which lead to

success

There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find

the ways in which you yourself have altered.

NELSON MANDELA, Long Walk to Freedom

Be bold when you loose

Be calm when you win

Heated gold become ornament

Beaten copper become a wire

Depleted stone become statue

So the more pain you get in life you become more valuable

When Simon and Garfunkel wrote

the song... you’ve got to make the moment last

We are not living in a world where you

have to run like crazy

Keep pace with the surroundings that are

moving twice as fast.

Imagine how much more we need to

slow down now when we travel in

supersonic jets and trains

Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into contracts. Nelson Mandela

Fast eat Slow

“We are moving from a world in which the big

eat the small and fast eat the slow.”

I greet you all in the name of peace, democracy and freedom for all! I

stand here before you not as a prophet but as a humble servant of

you, the people. Your tireless and heroic sacrifices have made it

possible for me to be here today. I therefore place the remaining years

of my life in your hands.

Nelson Mandela

Time sickness In 1982, Larry Dossey, an American physician,

coined the term ‘time sickness’ to describe the belief that time is getting away and that one must pedal faster to keep up.

We all, at least the metropolitan or mega polis dwelling citizens, belong to the cult of speed.

We want to get to our destination in the record time, we want the fastest Internet access, we want our news as fast as it can be delivered, and if we don’t get that, we fret.

Everyone feels that there is not enough time and they have to cram as much stuff and at the fastest possible speed in a day as possible.

What pains me

How we portrays the virtue of speed.

Thinkers with glib answers for everything.

Analyzing events as they are unfolding.

Knowledge and wisdom do not have

much currency in this age of information.

It is all about here and now, not how.

For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to

live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of

others.

Nelson Mandela

Instant gratification FUME mutilate

It is said that we live in the ‘age of instant gratification’.

But the way things are going, that too has become passé. We are looking for things that are beyond instant.

We are living in the ‘age of rage’. This fixation with speed leads to road rage, shopping rage, relationship rage, office rage and at times, even gym rage.

People mutilating gym equipment because they want to do it all in 25 minutes flat. Imagine the harm done to their bodies in the long run.

Consumer capitalist

Consumer capitalist economy is

contributing its part in this time sickness.

It is getting too fast –– even for its own

good.

And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people

permission to do the same.

Nelson Mandela

Lewis Mumsford once said

“Clock is the key machine of the

Industrial Revolution.”

Another indication of the long history of

time sickness is that most of the 15,000

machines registered at the US patent

office in 1850 were for “acceleration of

speed and for the saving of time and

labor.”

Urbanization

Urbanization, another feature of the

industrial era, helped quicken the pace.

Cities have always attracted energetic and

dynamic people which accelerated the

general pace of living. Terms like time rich

and time poor are also coined in the

super fast age of industrialism.

Don’t become more Christian than pope

Industrial capitalism

Industrial capitalism feeds on speed and rewards it as never before. The business that manufactures and ships its products fastest can under cut rivals. If one pauses long enough to notice, one would see that there is a human cost to this turbo capitalism. These days, people exist to serve the economy rather than the other way around. Have we ever stopped and asked why are we working so hard? The obvious answer is money, but the endless pursuit of consumer goods means we need more and more cash.

In a corporate set up

In a corporate set up, gone are the eight-hour working day and 40-hour week, everyone works for as long as it takes to make one’s mark. After years of downsizing, companies expect employees to shoulder the burden left behind by their laid off colleagues. With the fear of losing their jobs hanging over their heads, people regard overwork as a way to prove their worth and this turbo capitalism offers a one-way ticket to burn out.

Fact Craving Most people have unrealistic expectations

from themselves.

We all want to be over achievers;

Ability to discern

If we don’t do it all, we are not content (happy) and keep on craving (thirst )for more.

We fail to realise that there is an unrealistic difference between what we want and what we can actually achieve and there is no guarantee that we will achieve it all.

What is forgotten

Fact that long hours on the job are

making everyone

Unproductive,

Error prone,

Irritable,

Unhappy

Ill.

It is because of such work environment Woman can say I am pregnant or I am not pregnant woman cant

say I am little bit pregnant

Karoshi

Japanese, the ever creative nation,

even added a new word to their

vocabulary, ‘karoshi’ which means

death by over work.

Consumerism and its pressure for

speed are taking its toll on

everyone.

We live in a 24/7 time frame

We can be reached 24/7 via cell phones.

We shop on our days off, we pay bills after hours.

We are online all the time and take our laptops to bed with us.

We all need to ask if we have lost the capacity of doing nothing.

Taking pleasure in sitting in a park and enjoying the cool evening breeze can be as pleasant an experience as staying cooped up in a dark room and playing a super fast game at Xbox.

Time Out

Gazing out of the window or sitting idle.

They were either reading

Playing games on their phones,

Texting messages

listening to music or news

Working on their laptops

Yammering into their mobiles.

Growing old inevitable, Growing up is optional

Things changed for me when I took

time off to go back to university for

another degree

Being a student for a year has changed

the perspective for me.

The one thing children wear out faster than shoes is

parents

‘Slow Food’

There is a ‘Slow Food’ movement founded in 1986 by Carlo Petrini in Italy as a resistance movement to combat fast food. Geir Berthelsen created ‘The World Institute of Slowness’ and coined the term ‘Slow Travel’ in 1999 citing a vision for an entire ‘Slow Planet’. Carl Honroe in his book, In Praise of Slow says that there is a growing trend in people who are looking for a more holistic attitude which can be seen in increased use of alternative medicine and popularity of yoga. Even the aerobics queen Jane Fonda, who sold millions of tapes and books on aerobics, now, swears by yoga.

Leisure was declared a human right

in 1948 by United Nations We need to go back to more leisurely

pursuits such as gardening, reading, painting, making crafts and learn to be happy with it. Feminism denounced homemaking as a curse on womankind; hence modern woman does not know the pleasure in knitting, making crochet, and sewing. Even though denounced, it nevertheless is a creative process and has a therapeutic effect to it.

Debbie Stoller, an American feminist,

hailed knitting as the new yoga and

a lot of young

Debbie Stoller, an American feminist, hailed knitting as the new yoga and a lot of young women have taken to it, including the woman with a 20-million-dollar smile, Julia Roberts. I hope it now makes knitting officially cool. BBC recently reported that even Prince Charles has urged people to slow down and allow themselves more time for reflection. The prince said modern life had got out of balance, and needed to return to the rhythms of nature.

“There is more to life than

increasing its speed. I agree that most of us do not wish to

replace speed with lethargy, but finding

the right balance is the key to a balanced

personal and professional life. Like

Mahatma Gandhi once said, “There is

more to life than increasing its speed.

The friends have way of speaking with out words

Leadership decision

Teacher open the door, but you must

enter by yourself

Falling in love is easy but staying in love is some

thing very special

Leadership decision

Teacher open the door, but you must

enter by yourself

Swimming cant be learn by reading The

successful person makes a habit of doing

what the failing person doesn't like to do.

The three great essentials to achieve

anything worth while are, first, hard work;

second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common

sense.

Leadership decision

Unless commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes...but no plans.

Mistakes are part of the dues one pays for a full life.

Vision is the art of seeing the impossible.

Power is energy in use.

Results depend on Relationships.

The harder I work, the more luck I have.

Leadership decision

Have the courage to act instead of react.

Knock the “t” off the can’t.

Don’t fight the problem. Decide it.

I don’t know the key to success, but the key

to failure is trying to please everyone.

Knowledge speaks, but wisdom listens.

Success

Success is not a doorway, it’s a stairway.

You are born an original. Don’t die a copy.

Love to Love

Impotence to Impotence

Be dignified loser rather than corrupt

winner

What Are My Priorities? • Situation: All of us who have built an organization and moved

ourselves and others into an initial manager/team leader role struggle

with our priorities.

• We have many: some relate to personal production ( an example

would be a sales person moving to sales manager), training of our

team members, reviewing our key indicators on key activities that lead

to goal achievement ( the dials that we read to make sure our unit of

business is stable or needs attention- some owners do this innately,

but you need to formalize indicators and model them so your

managers have a system), recruiting and selection activities and what I

am I doing to provide a positive motivational atmosphere. These are

just a few pulls and tugs on our priorities as we build a team capable of

achieving the business unit’s goals. As managers/leaders we now have

authority and accountability in the areas of: productivity, profit

contribution and people within budget and policies and procedures.

How do I approach my many

priorities as a manager /

leader?

Here is a suggested list of priorities and routines that you may find

challenging or surprising at first. These have been validated by many

managers and leaders that I have worked with over the years, who have

realized that their role was to build a team capable of achieving the

business unit’s goals.

Stabilization: 1

Read the dials make sure your unit is stable and capable of meeting its business obligation. If I were a restaurant manager I may look at certain things: clean up from previous day, staff in place to carry out daily functions, parking area cleaned or plowed, supplies for day’s menu in place etc. – you get the idea. If any of these indicators indicate a problem I need to take appropriate action to stabilize the situation- once this is done I can move onto my next priority.

New Hire Training: 2

A new person can not provide a return

on the investment until they are

trained. As a professional leader I need to

know where they are in their

development process and get them up to

speed as soon as possible

Team Development and

Communications: 3 There are regular meetings that need to

take place with my staff and I need to plan

for and conduct them on a regular

scheduled basis

Team Staffing: 4

If I am a new manager this may move up

the ladder in priorities. The responsibility

to recruit and select people for my team

is a high priority often over-looked by

managers. For example: an understaffed

sales team has a high opportunity cost in

lost or unrealized sales revenue

Personal one on one meeting

with staff members: 5 The highly productive people often are

taken for granted and one may think…

he/she is doing fine I will spend time with

… he/she is not productive. Retention is

important – especially highly productive

people- spend time with the winners-

they have the capacity to give your team

higher returns. Don’t be surprised if they

leave if you don’t invest in them.

Personal Production: 6

You are not developing your team, if this

is your number one priority. It may be

necessary, but it needs to fall into proper

sequence of where you are in building

your team. If personal production takes

up all of your time than these other

important roles of leadership are not

taking place.

Conclusion:

The priorities, with the exception of stabilization, do not need to be

done every day. However, there will be many days when several of

these priorities are worked and a few rare days when all priorities are

touched. Remember, manager/leaders have to switch their mindset

from themselves to thinking about team development in order to

achieve goals: the process of recruiting, selecting, developing, managing

and motivating a group of people into a highly productive unit. The line

management position is the most important link within any organization

and also the most challenging and rewarding role. It is necessary to

balance this leadership role with personal production. To be a manager

is not just a title, it requires a commitment to leadershi

Critical to success:

• Driving corporate performance has become increasingly

complex.

• Balancing strategic priorities, leading effective teams and

establishing competitive advantage are critical to

success.

• Fundamental areas of organisational • Challenge: strategy,

• leadership

• Transformation.

It will challenge you to create a successful future

for yourself and your organisation.

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8 qualities that successful leaders

have Effective leadership is what determines

whether a business achieves, struggles or

falls by the wayside. There are reams of

articles, books, programmes and audios

available. For me, there are at least 8

qualities that successful leaders have.

1. Responsibility

The best leaders take responsibility for making things happen. We all know just how easy it is to blame external factors and we probably all have done this at some time. You know the scenario. If only accounts, purchasing, sales and marketing, customer services, etc would do this everything would be okay. We might even blame the economy, the weather or even the competition. If you want to excel as a leader take responsibility for making things happen.

2. Integrity

Your success depends on others

following. People will only follow if they

believe they can rely on you to

demonstrate high standards, be open,

honest and truthful with them. They also

expect consistency. When you are

consistent (no matter what your

leadership style is) people know what to

expect

3. Decision takers

We all have fears and doubts when it comes to taking decisions. Will it be the right one, what happens if it goes wrong, how will I look or be perceived by others? These are just a few of the questions and dilemmas faced or going through their head. What sets successful leaders apart is their willingness to face fears and take decisions rather than procrastinate. They know that they will get their fair share of decisions wrong and will learn from them.

4. Deal with facts

Realism is essential if you are to be a successful leader. Realism is about facing up to whatever is going on, rather than expending energy wishing it was different. When faced with decisions, the best leaders will focus on the facts to determine what is realistic. Imagine you are faced with a poorly performing organisation. You might wish it could be fixed next month or next week, but the reality might be that it will take months and maybe years.

5. Vision and inspiration

The most successful leaders have the

ability not just to create a vision but to

communicate it in an inspiring way. They

see the big picture and inspire others to

work together to make it happen.

6. Optimism

There are some who are naturally

pessimistic, while others are naturally

optimistic. Successful leaders are part of

the second group. They know that they

cannot control every eventuality but they

can control how they respond. They focus

on solutions, not problems.

7. Resilient

No matter what you set out to as a

leader, there will be set backs,

disappointments and failures along the

way. The most successful leaders are

extremely resilient and when things do

not work out as they hoped, they bounce

back.

8. Excellence

Excellence in what they do is one of the

defining qualities of successful leaders.

They have a mindset of continuous

improvement. They look for better,

smarter ways of doing things. They are

continual learners.

While leaders have numerous qualities,

making a start on these 8 can get you off

to a flying start.

The performance review

plays an important role in getting you promoted and also affects your future in the company. Most people do not keep in mind that you have to keep on preparing for the performance review all year long and they get panicked when the performance review is just around the corner. The fact is that most of the bosses and the managers keep a tab on your performance.

Performance

No matter how valuable you consider yourself for the company, a performance review is bound to make you feel nervous and anxious. The performance review plays an important role in getting you promoted and also affects your future in the company. Most people do not keep in mind that you have to be prepared for the performance review all year long and panic when the review is just around the corner. The fact is that most of the bosses and the managers keep a tab on your performance all through the year and the performance review is an evaluation based on what they have observed during the time. So even if the next performance review is not nearby, it is advisable that you start preparing for it right now. If you wish to get a promotion or an appraisal, you not only have to work hard for it but also make sure that you are fulfilling your job requirements properly and efficiently. To ensure that you are well prepared for the performance review, follow the simple but effective rules mentioned below:

Get Acquainted With The

Process:

The best way to make sure that you do well

in your performance review id to get yourself thoroughly acquainted with the evaluation process. If you are new to the company ask your colleagues what the last performance review was like. Different companies have different approaches towards conducting the performance review and it is best to get to know how the managers at your company go about it and prepare for the review accordingly.

Keep Track Of Your

Accomplishment:

One of the most important task while

preparing for a performance review is to keep track of what goals you have achieved on the specific time period. This will help you build a strong case for yourself during the performance review interview with your boss. You need to be able to articulate the steps you have taken that have resulted in success for the company and how you have managed to achieve the goals on a personal level.

Make A List:

It is best to keep a log book of all the major accomplishments so that you can refer to them at the time of the appraisal interview. You can make a neat and bulleted list which concisely articulates all your achievements and take it with you to be submitted to the boss during the performance review. Make sure that you list just the actual achievements and do not brag about minor goals which anyone else could have achieved just as easily. You need to distinguish yourself from your peers and the best way to do that is by showing what goals you have achieved which the others failed to.

Self Assessment:

You need to constantly keep on assessing yourself in order to make it through the performance review with flying colors. Be honest with yourself and do a candid assessment of your work every month. Evaluate your strengths and your weaknesses and then work on the weaknesses to turn them into strengths. Identify your key assignments and make sure your work is up to the task.

For Self Assessment, You Need

To Ask Yourself The Following

Questions: How I have helped the company by bringing in

money?

How did I help averse a crisis posed to the company?

What did I contribute to strengthen my company?

What are my weaknesses and how have they affected my work?

What more can I do to increase my output?

Am I indispensable for my company?

If not, what can I do to make sure that I become indispensable for the company?

Dwell On Specifics:

During a performance review interview with

your boss or the manager keep in mind to

dwell on the specifics rather than

generalizations. When you are building a case

for yourself you need to make it clear what

specific goals you have achieves and what

specific targets you have achieved that

resulted in a benefit to the company. If you

have contributed to some improvements in

the workplace, be sure to bring examples.

Refrain From Claiming Undue

Credit

When going through a performance

appraisal review make sure that you do not

claim credit for the achievements which are

not yours. The managers are well aware of

the work done by each individual as they

have done their homework. Taking credit for

the work done by others will create a bad

impression on the managers and will

negatively affect your appraisal.

Admit Your Limitations:

Be prepared to accept your limitations as there are certain weaknesses in everyone and no one can be perfect. So when you are being interviewed and some of your limitations are mentioned, be prepared to own them. Be sure to explain what you are doing to rectify the situation and how you are going to make sure that these weaknesses do not create any hurdles in your working capacity.

Be Honest:

It is pertinent to be honest during your performance appraisal. You have to be able to admit any setbacks or shortcomings and make a commitment to improve them without hesitation. If you made a mistake in the course of the time you have worked in the company, be prepared to own it rather than trying to blame it on others. Show some maturity and explain why the mistake happened, what were the consequences and what you measures have you taken to make sure that such mistakes do not occur in the future.

Handle Criticism Well:

If you are given a negative comment about your performance and you leap to defend yourself aggressively, you are committing the gravest mistake of your life and doing the worst thing for your career. You need to be able to listen to criticism and respond appropriately. If you can explain calmly and conclusively, everything is ok, but if you feel that the criticism is unjust it is best to do away with it by uttering a neutral acceptance and giving you reassurance to rectify the problem. It might be that the boss is just criticizing you to see how you react and get all worked up will be the wrong answer. It is very important to stay calm during the entire process. No one wants an employee on the team who loses his calm at the slightest criticism.

Conclusion:

To ace a performance review you cannot take measures for a week and hope to get the best results. You have to work towards the goal all year long, making sure that you are not doing anything to sabotage your career in the long run. Keep working towards the goal and follow the above mentioned suggestions to perform better during the next performance appraisal. And remember! You have to be consistent and work hard all year long as it is impossible to get an appraisal based only on your performance in the last month.

Laws of Success The great sin -- Gossip.

The great crippler -- Fear.

The greatest mistake -- Giving up.

The most satisfying experience -- Doing your duty first.

The best action -- Keep the mind clear and judgment good.

The greatest blessing -- Good health.

The biggest fool - The man who lies to himself.

The great gamble -- Substituting hope for facts.

The most certain thing in life -- Change.

The greatest joy -- Being needed.

The cleverest man -- The one who does what he thinks is right.

The most potent force -- Positive thinking.

The greatest opportunity -- The next one.

The greatest victory -- Victory over self.

The best play -- Successful work.

The greatest handicap -- Egotism.

The most expensive indulgence -- Hate.

The most dangerous man -- The liar

The most ridiculous trait -- False pride.

The greatest loss -- Loss of self confidence.

Why do some people seem to reach the top of the corporate ladder easily, while others remain stuck on the middle-management rung? You might think that it is just because those people have more of what it takes to succeed, like brains, talent and powerful people in their corner. But there is something else that is just as important: attitude. Dr. Martin Seligman, an authority on optimism, discovered that attitude was a better predictor of success than I.Q., education and most other factors. He found that positive people stay healthier, have better relationships and go further in their careers. And he even found that positive people make more money. Anyone can adopt the right attitude. No matter where you are from or how much innate talent you have, the right attitude can make a difference in your career. Try adopting these 10 attitudes of successful workers:

Attitudes of Successful Workers

I am in charge of my destiny.

If you spend your entire career waiting for

something exciting to come to you, you will

be waiting a long time. Successful

professionals go out and make good things

happen. So commit yourself to thinking

about your career in an entirely different

way. You will make it to the top, and you are

in charge of making it happen.

Anything is possible.

Think that there is no way you will ever be

at the vice-president level? Then you

definitely won't. Remember: If you think

you can't, you probably won't. Adopt the

attitude of The Little Engine That Could -- "I

think I can."

No task is too small to do well.

You never know when you are going to be noticed. That is one reason to take pride in your work -- all of it. One public relations executive in Chicago said that her first task in the PR department of a ballet company was reorganizing the supply closet. She tackled the project with gusto and was immediately noticed for her hard work and attention to detail. Remember this the next time you feel like slacking because you are working on a menial task.

Everyone is a potential key

contact.

While you do need to be aggressive in the workplace, you can also go far by being nice to those around you. Do you think it's unimportant to establish a good rapport with your boss's secretary? Well, just try getting your meeting squeezed onto the schedule when you really need it. Be courteous to those around you -- you never know when your past contacts will play a role in your future.

I was made to do this job... and

the one above me. If you spend your days feeling like you are

not cut out to do the work you are

responsible for, your performance will

suffer. Your job may not be the perfect fit,

but successful workers act like they are in

their dream job, no matter where they are.

It's not just what I know, but

who I know. Successful workers understand the

importance of networking, both in and out

of the office. You need to proactively

establish professional contacts. Invite a

colleague out to lunch. Go to the after-

work happy hour. Join your professional

association. Do your part to establish a

networking path for your future.

What else can I do?

Since you are in charge of your destiny, it's your job to look for ways to improve your professional self. Volunteer to take on an extra project. Learn a new skill that will make you more marketable. Stay late to help your co-workers. Successful workers don't just complete the job and sign out -- they look for additional ways to make their mark.

Failure will help pave the way

to my success.

While it seems like some people never

experience setbacks, the truth is everyone

fails from time to time. The difference

between successful and unsuccessful people

is how they deal with failure. Those who

find success are the ones who learn from

mistakes and move on.

I am my own biggest fan.

Have you been waiting for someone in the

office to recognize your talents and efforts?

Maybe it's time you start tooting your own

horn. Step up and talk about your

accomplishments and what you have done

for the company. Successful workers know

how to point out their achievements

without sounding boastful.

My opportunity monitor is

never turned off. Yes, there will be days when you will want

to just be happy with the status quo. But

remember that successful workers are

always on the lookout for opportunities to

improve. Keep your eyes, ears and your

mind open to new opportunities -- you

never know when you will discover the one

that will change the course of your career!